What Friends Are For
by OutToGarden
Summary: "Sometimes I think about having sex with you," Alfred admitted. "In a fantasizing way?" Arthur asked. "Maybe? It's more like I asked myself once that if I had to lose my virginity to someone that I know right now, who would I choose? And I picked you because you're my best friend and I trust you." Alfred and Arthur are close friends that are about to get a whole lot closer.


Arthur looked over at his best friend when he heard yet another sigh. They had been lounging side by side on Alfred's bed for the better part of the afternoon, Arthur reading a book and Alfred playing some game on his Nintendo DS on mute. Alfred had suddenly started acting a bit morose and continuously paused his game to stare off into a corner of the bedroom before sighing and resuming, only to repeat his actions not five minutes later. With a huff, Arthur placed a bookmark into his book and set it to the side.

"What's wrong?" he demanded. Alfred started slightly, apparently surprised to hear Arthur speak after such a large time of silence.

"Huh?" he asked. Arthur rolled his eyes.

"Alfred, you've been sighing repeatedly for the last twenty minutes. I've been your best friend for five years and I know you only do that when something is bothering you."

Alfred looked away and worried his lip between his teeth, seemingly considering whether or not to confide in the other. Arthur waited patiently, rolling over and propping his head up on his hand. Honestly, for a senior in high school, Alfred could be rather childish about certain things.

"Do you ever really want to lose your virginity?"

Arthur snorted in surprise and turned his face away to hide his slight discomfort. "Where did that come from?"

"I don't know." Alfred shrugged. "I guess I overheard some guys in gym talking about all the sex they've had and it made me feel kind of behind."

 _The things I put up with_ , Arthur thought to himself.

"You know they're most likely all making it up, right?" Arthur said, eyes narrowed.

"Yeah…" Alfred sighed, shifting a bit to face Arthur. "I know. I'm probably just sexually frustrated."

Now Arthur could feel himself blushing. Sure, they talked to each other about everything, but this topic hadn't come up in a while and he felt a bit embarrassed by it. "Well, we _are_ teenage boys. You're certainly not the only one."

"Gasp!" Alfred unnecessarily said with a sly grin. "You mean the staunch, uptight Arthur Kirkland has sexual energies, too?"

Arthur rolled his eyes and playfully punched his best friend's ribcage. "Oh, sod off. You know I do."

Alfred laughed. "Hey, college is just around the corner. Plenty of intelligent, attractive singles to choose from there!"

"Ah, yes," Arthur said dryly. "I expect you'll get knackered at some party and bugger the first girl to bat her eyes at you."

"Not cool!" Alfred said, scandalized. Arthur didn't bother hiding his wicked smirk as he dodged an indignant smack from his best friend. However, his smirk sobered when he noticed the genuine worry lurking behind Alfred's eyes.

"Is that something you're actually concerned about?" he asked hesitantly. Alfred looked away once more and he knew that he had hit the nail on the head.

"I know this is kind of gay, but…I really do want my first time to be with someone I care about and trust," Alfred said.

"Excuse you, that's offensive," Arthur reminded him with a glare. Alfred's eyes twinkled mischievously.

"What, I can't call things gay? Plenty of people would say us laying in bed together is gay."

"It doesn't count if we've been doing it for years," Arthur said primly.

"That makes it _extra_ gay!"

" _You_ _'_ _re_ extra gay!" Arthur retorted, regretting the comeback as soon as it left his mouth.

Alfred threw his head back on the pillow and laughed. "Oh, that's rich coming from you!"

"I will push you off your own bed," Arthur threatened. He really hated his best friend sometimes. And himself, for coming out to Alfred the year before. "In all seriousness, though, there's nothing wrong with wanting to wait for someone special. Just because some blokes in high school screw around aimlessly doesn't mean you have to."

Alfred picked at a bit of lint on the bedspread as he considered Arthur's words. "I know that. I just don't want to go off to college and then get caught up in the moment at some party, like you said. But then at the same time I totally _do_ want to do that because I want to have sex so badly it's crazy."

Arthur groaned. "You're hopeless, Alfred. And lewd. And I hope none of the girls at our college will go anywhere near you so you have to suffer forever."

Alfred stuck his tongue out at him, but didn't bother replying. The two merely laid in silent companionship for several moments, mulling over their individual thoughts. Arthur began to think that the conversation was officially over, but just as he reached to pick his book back up and resume reading, Alfred spoke.

"You know, I've been thinking about that a bit lately, too. The girl thing, I mean. And…I don't know." Alfred squirmed a bit and Arthur was interested to see that a slight blush had formed on his friend's face. "I don't think I would mind it so much if I was with someone who wasn't, well, a girl."

"Oh?" Arthur said. Alfred hadn't mentioned anything remotely indicative of that before. In fact, it had become something of an inside joke among their friend group that Alfred was their "token straight boy".

"Yeah, I mean…like I said, I kind of just want to be with someone that I care about. And trust."

Arthur hummed thoughtfully, noting with interest that Alfred wasn't meeting his eye. "That's definitely important."

Alfred nodded, lapsing them back into quiet. There was a niggling thought at the corner of Arthur's mind, but he resolved to thoroughly ignoring it, instead taking the moment to stretch, feeling a bit stiff from being stationary all afternoon. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Alfred roll his head towards him.

"I'm really glad we're going to the same college. I would have to waste a lot of energy missing you otherwise."

Arthur snorted. "Oh, please. It's not like you have any dearth of that."

"What does 'dearth' mean?" Alfred asked with a crinkle of his nose.

"It means a lack of something."

"Then why didn't you just say that in the first place?" Alfred exclaimed.

"Because I like to continuously prove my superiority over you in any manner possible," Arthur replied. Alfred laughed and scooted closer to sling an arm over his waist. Others might find it strange for two male best friends to share a bed and even cuddle a bit, but Arthur thought nothing of it. Alfred had always been the affectionate sort and honestly, they had been friends for so long that it really didn't matter. Besides, Arthur thought it was a bit unfair that two girls could do the same thing without anyone ever questioning it.

Arthur shifted his position slightly to get more comfortable and brought a hand up to rest on Alfred's bicep. It felt perfectly natural to do so and Arthur happily relaxed, allowing his eyes to fall shut.

"I read a book once where a guy and a girl who were friends had sex just to see what it was like," Alfred said suddenly.

"Have we really not moved on from this?" Arthur bemoaned, drawing his hand back to cover his face. So much for his peaceful resting time.

"Sorry," Alfred said sheepishly. "I just thought it was interesting."

Arthur peered suspiciously at Alfred from behind his hand. "We need to find you a hobby if that's what you find interesting."

"Oh come on," Alfred whined. "I'm just saying."

"Yes, well." Arthur stifled a yawn. "How did it turn out for those characters in the book? Which sounds like a bloody awful book, by the way."

"They ended up getting married at the end, so it couldn't have been too bad."

"Oh, Alfred…the trash you read, honestly," Arthur said. "I, for one, don't think I could ever have sex with one of my friends. It would be too awkward."

"Sometimes I think about having sex with you," Alfred admitted in a tone that Arthur thought was much to casual for the words coming out of his mouth. Arthur whipped his head around to find Alfred regarding him without a trace of jest.

"What?" he said, having trouble getting the word out.

Alfred shrugged his shoulders a bit. "It's just something I've thought about."

"Like…in a fantasizing way?" Arthur asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"Um, I don't know," Alfred said hesitantly, having the decency to finally look a bit flustered. "Not really. Maybe? It's more like I asked myself once that if I absolutely had to lose my virginity to someone that I know right now, who would I choose? And I picked you because you're my best friend and I trust you."

Arthur cleared his throat, feeling oddly as if it was constricted. "Well, I'm flattered," was all he could reply. Privately, he thought it was a perfectly odd thing for Alfred to have said. And he felt a bit of anger, too, because Alfred's words had caused involuntary images to flood his mind and made him feel suspiciously hot under the collar. Of course, he would be blind to not recognize how incredibly attractive Alfred was, but he refused to even allow his mind to begin to go down that road.

"Sorry," Alfred said after a moment with a frown. "I didn't mean to make things weird."

"It's alright," Arthur said, not bothering to deny that he had. Alfred seemed to take that as permission to snuggle closer into Arthur's shoulder and breath all over his neck.

"Am I really that repulsive?" Alfred joked, voice muffled slightly against the fabric of Arthur's shirt.

"I never said anything to indicate that I find you repulsive," Arthur said. "Well, at least not within this conversation," he amended.

"So you find me attractive?" Alfred said.

Arthur gave out an irritated sigh. "Alfred, there are so many shades between repulsive and attractive. It's not one or the other."

Alfred didn't respond and Arthur began to feel distinctly uncomfortable. Why was Alfred asking such strange questions all of a sudden? His hand had begun to rub soothingly along Arthur's side, which in itself wasn't unusual or remarkable, but within the context of the conversation made it feel almost as if Alfred had a point that he was trying to get to, albeit in a very roundabout way and Arthur was caught between making an excuse about having to get home or demanding that Alfred tell him what he was thinking.

Unexpectedly, Alfred sat up and leaned over a bit to peer into Arthur's eyes. "If I asked, would you have sex with me?"

"Wha—Alfred!" Arthur said, sitting up as well to face the other in shock. He could feel the heat rising in his cheeks as well as an involuntary crease forming between his eyebrows. "Why are you asking me such a question?"

"So you _would_ have sex with me then?" the cheeky bugger said with a grin.

"I—I don't know!" Arthur said, at a loss for any other words. "That's an awfully rude thing to joke about, you know."

Alfred dropped his grin and a serious look overtook his face. "I'm not joking. I told you that I want it to be special and I can't think of any better way than to do it with the most important person in my life."

"Is that what this conversation is really all about?" Arthur gaped for several seconds before coming to his senses. "You're not honestly asking me to have sex with you right now," he stated.

Alfred bit his lip and Arthur tried to ignore the genuineness shining through his blue eyes. "And if I am?"

"Alfred," Arthur said. "We're _best friends_. Best friends don't take each other's virginities!"

"Why not?" Alfred said with a shrug. "Male best friends don't typically hug a lot or hold each other's hands every now and then or cuddle, but we do that all the time."

"But…you're not even attracted to me," Arthur protested. Something inside of him was singing in anticipation. He needed to kill it.

Arthur expected Alfred to admit that he was right and that the idea was stupid and to change the subject. However, what came next was entirely unprecedented. Alfred, after studying Arthur seriously for a moment, simultaneously leaned forward towards him and brought his hands up to cup the sides of his head. Before Arthur could so much as blink, Alfred had clumsily pressed their lips together. His immediate reaction was to tense up and jerk backwards, but Alfred gently kept him in place and held the kiss for several seconds before pulling away. His lips remained slightly parted and soft puffs of air escaped from between them, lightly blowing against Arthur's face in a way he found impossible to dislike.

Arthur could feel his heart beating wildly and he breathed harshly due to the fact that he had stopped breathing during the kiss because of the shock. Had that seriously just happened? Alfred was looking at him with something akin to wonder. He wanted to deny it and go back to reading his book, but he could still practically feel Alfred's slightly chapped lips on his and he realized with a jolt that he wanted to do it again.

So he did. This time, he let his own hands come up as instinct took over. One remained on Alfred's neck to rub at the warm skin there and the other happily tangled into Alfred's silky hair. Arthur felt a chill go down his spine when Alfred hummed into the kiss and pressed closer. In their inexperience, they ran out of air rather rapidly and Alfred's glasses were uncomfortable against Arthur's face and the whole thing was uncoordinated, but neither boy could deny that they liked it. In some ways, Arthur felt that he shouldn't be at all surprised that this was happening. After all, it seemed the logical sequel to the cuddling and affection. But Arthur needed rationalizations in order to function properly and so he told himself that it was the pure unexpectedness and exoticness of kissing his best friend that caused him to move in again after a break for air and fall slowly backwards so that he was lying on the bed with Alfred above him.

It was a comfortable position to be in, he found, so he didn't even mind when one of Alfred's hands wandered down and stroked along his shoulder. It was almost comical how neither of them really knew what they were doing, but in Arthur's mind it made it all the more special. They were just kissing, not even with tongue, but now that he had relaxed into it he found that kissing Alfred was quite enjoyable. It was warm (and maybe even a little bit hot) and the strangeness of a new thing with a very familiar person appealed to him. After another minute or two of alternately pressing their lips together and taking breaks for air, Alfred leaned up on his forearms to create some distance between them.

"Oh, wow," Alfred got out through his panting. "Yeah, I don't think attraction is going to be a problem."

Arthur laughed breathlessly. "Don't presume this is happening just because of some kissing, Alfred. I still don't know if it's such a good idea," Arthur said. Although, it was already a bit too late to go back. One cannot simply take back making out with one's best friend.

"Okay," Alfred said. "Tell me what your reservations are."

Arthur worried his lip, looking up at Alfred and mentally wording his thoughts. "Well, my main concern is that you haven't really thought this through very well. I don't want us to do this on a whim and then have it ending up destroying our friendship."

"I love you," Alfred said seriously. Arthur had never seen his eyes look so focused or certain before. "I don't know if I do in a romantic way, but I know that I do. I value your friendship more than anything and I wouldn't just toss it away on some whim. Believe me when I say that I've been thinking about this. I want my first time to be with you."

"You're just full of surprises today, aren't you?" Arthur said weakly. "How long do we have before your mom gets home?"

Alfred glanced at the clock on his bedside table. "About an hour and a half."

Arthur inhaled until his lungs couldn't hold anything more and exhaled slowly. He couldn't believe he was about to agree to this. "Alright," Arthur said with a nod. "Alright, let's do this." Alfred's eyes lit up and he moved closer, presumably to kiss Arthur again. Arthur held up his hand. "But I swear to god, if you regret this later and make things awkward then I will _kill_ you."

Alfred grinned. "I won't, I promise."

Arthur nodded once, sharply, and cleared his throat. "Right. Well, then." He looked up at Alfred warily. "How are we doing this?"

"Um." Alfred flushed scarlet. "I…I was thinking I could…you know," he said.

Arthur arched an eyebrow in amusement. "You want to top?"

Blushing even further, Alfred nodded. Arthur thought absently to himself that it was a bit cute that Alfred was getting shy now despite being the one to proposition Arthur. Taking pity on the poor thing and recognizing that one of them needed to make a move if this was actually going to happen, Arthur pushed himself up off the bed with his hands and angled his face to meet Alfred for another kiss.

It felt good, he couldn't ignore that. Alfred was a noticeable weight on him, but the boy had at least enough sense to keep his full weight off of him by pressing a hand into the mattress by Arthur's head, letting the other rest gently on the Arthur's cheek. Alfred's thumb smoothed over the skin there as they kissed and Arthur wrapped his arms around Alfred's neck. His knee came up and he maneuvered it to hook around Alfred's calf, locking them comfortably together.

It should have been weird. It should have felt like kissing his brother and he should have been disgusted. But he wasn't. Not at all. On the contrary, he thought to himself that he wouldn't mind kissing Alfred more often. Tentatively, he opened his mouth a bit more and was pleased when Alfred took the queue and allowed his tongue to venture out. Arthur's tongue met Alfred's halfway and he felt Alfred shiver as they tangled together slightly.

"Arthur," Alfred whispered when they parted for air. Both of them were breathing heavily and beet red all over. "Should we," he said, pausing to swallow roughly. "Should we take our clothes off now?"

Arthur felt a hitch in his own breath from a mixture of anticipation and nerves at that. This was really happening, wasn't it? They had just made out and they were about to get naked so they could have sex. Oh, god. He found himself nodding and Alfred pushed himself away again on shaky arms. Once Alfred had sat back on his haunches, Arthur leaned up and, with a moment to collect himself, pulled his shirt over his head, tossing it onto the floor. It was nice to notice that Alfred was watching him with rapt attention, biting at the corner of his kiss-swollen lip.

"Are you just going to stare at me or are you going to take your shirt off, too?"

Alfred started and gave a sheepish grin. "Right," he said, reaching down to pull off his shirt as well, also removing his glasses and setting them on his bedside table. This wasn't a big deal; as best friends, they had seen each other shirtless plenty of times before. The context of the removal made it a bit different, though, and they both knew what came next. Just as Alfred moved, presumably to get off the bed and take his pants off, Arthur grabbed his wrist.

"Wait," he said. Alfred frowned, worried that Arthur had changed his mind. "We need to get lube or something."

Alfred's face relaxed. "Oh, sure. Um…would you judge me if I stole my mom's?"

Arthur gave him a blank look. "Yes. Yes, I would. I don't even want to think about your mom using lube, thank you."

"It's either that or olive oil," Alfred said, a mischievous glint in his eye. Arthur hated him.

"Alright, fine! Just…hurry up and go get it!" Arthur said.

Alfred gave him a salute and clambered off his twin bed. With a "Be right back" he darted out the door and Arthur could hear his footsteps as he hurriedly jogged through his house to his mom's bedroom. While he waited, Arthur figured he might as well take his pants off, but he left his underwear on so as to not surprise Alfred too much upon his return. Then, he sat criss-cross on Alfred's bed and tried not to dwell too much on what was about to happen.

Alfred came running back into the room after a minute, panting slightly. Arthur had to smile at his eagerness and noted the bottle of a clear substance that was clutched in his hand.

"Do you care if we use a condom?" Alfred asked as he walked towards the bed.

Arthur raised an eyebrow. "I don't know. Do you have an STD?"

Alfred snorted. "Oh yeah, loads. The real reason I want to have sex with you is that I wanted you to have them, too, because sharing is caring."

"Sometimes I wonder why I'm your friend," Arthur said with a roll of his eyes.

Alfred laughed and set the bottle of lube on his bedside table, then trailed his line of vision over Arthur's form. Arthur blushed a bit, but stamped down his embarrassment knowing that Alfred was about to get undressed, too. He noticed that Alfred seemed even more nervous now than before, if his fidgets and hesitance were anything to go by.

Arthur gave him a smile and Alfred gulped a bit and tucked his chin towards his chest. His hands came up and he began to fiddle with the buckle on the belt that held up his jeans. Arthur got the strangest urge to do it for him, but restrained himself and watched as the belt came free and made an oddly erotic sound as Alfred pulled it from the loops. Once Alfred had pulled his pants down and stepped out of them, they both simply stared at each other in silence for a minute, each too shy to be the first one completely naked.

Steeling his nerves, Arthur stood from the bed and faced Alfred. "Let's do this together, then."

Alfred nodded, eyes wide. With a deep breath, Arthur steadied himself and hooked his fingers into the elastic of his boxer briefs and pulled them down, horrified to note that he felt a pulse of arousal upon becoming exposed. When was the last time anyone had seen him naked? Probably not since his mother had given him baths as a child. When he straightened again, he noted that Alfred had also removed his underwear. Almost against his permission, his eyes quickly flickered to Alfred's nether regions and Arthur realized with shock that Alfred was already hard.

 _That's going inside me_ , Arthur thought to himself. _Alfred is my best friend and he is going to put his penis inside of me._ It was an impressive size, too. Arthur was terrified. He couldn't wait.

He cleared his throat a bit and moved self-consciously to lay down on the bed again. Alfred watched in a daze as he moved and Arthur bit his lip to squelch the semi-aroused sigh that threatened to burst forth from him.

"You can still change your mind, you know," Arthur offered when Alfred made no attempt to do anything. He was worried that now that they were both in the nude, his friend had realized the gravity of the situation and gotten cold feet. Alfred shook his head a bit and his eyes unglazed.

"No, sorry. I'm feeling more sure about this than ever, actually," he said as he closed the distance between himself and Arthur. He got on his knees on the soft sheets below them and then carefully maneuvered one over Arthur and lowered himself to rest on his forearms so that he was straddling over him. Arthur could feel the heat emanating from the other's body. He spread his legs slightly so that Alfred could fit comfortably within them and wrapped his arms around the boy's neck. He knew that he was getting hard now, too.

Alfred pressed their foreheads together as he settled on Arthur and gave him a quick kiss. "Um, wow," he said intelligently as their bodies melded. They weren't even doing anything, but the skin-on-skin contact and the feeling of Alfred's erection against his thigh caused a violent shiver to course through Arthur and he gasped quietly.

"Yeah," he replied. How was Alfred so warm? Hesitantly, curiously, he kissed Alfred and allowed his hands to trail down the boy's back that had become broad and muscular in the last couple of years. The skin was smooth under his hands as he ran them over the jutting bones of his shoulder.

Alfred moaned into the kiss, taking Arthur's hint and exploring Arthur's sides with his own hands. He only had access to a thin strip of skin on each side due to their position, but he made do and Arthur certainly had no complaints. He felt goosebumps raise, following the path that Alfred's fingers were making down to his hips. Alfred shyly ghosted his hands over them and although Arthur could tell that Alfred wanted to feel more of Arthur down there, the first timer nerves proved to be too much and Alfred retreated to rubbing circles over Arthur's ribs.

"Your skin is really soft," Alfred whispered against Arthur's mouth.

"I lotion it," Arthur said, the intimacy of the moment lulling him into honesty. He regretted it when Alfred snorted softly.

"That's pretty gay," Alfred teased, pinching Arthur's side lightly.

"Really?" Arthur demanded. "You're going to call _me_ gay? When this was your idea?"

"Having sex with you doesn't make me gay," Alfred said and kissed Arthur's cheek.

"No," Arthur agreed. "But I won't let you say you're straight after this." He smoothed his hands once more down Alfred's back and up again, secretly admiring what he found.

"Why not?"

Arthur smirked at his best friend. "You got hard as soon as I took my clothing off."

Alfred chuckled breathily. "Fair enough."

Arthur felt more relaxed after the familiar exchange of banter and hooked his legs around Alfred's waist. He began to think that this whole idea wasn't too bad after all and that maybe Alfred had been on to something. So maybe they weren't dating or anything, but they cared deeply for each other. He had heard horror stories of people's first times being unpleasant and awkward and while both of them were nervous and had permanent blushes staining their faces, they trusted each other enough that it still felt comfortable and meaningful.

Alfred smiled at him, happiness shining through his eyes, and stretched his arm to grab the bottle of lube from the little table. It was almost like he couldn't stop when he kissed Arthur again, but Arthur certainly wasn't complaining as he had decided that he liked that bit very much. They were getting more adventurous and heated in their kissing now and Arthur instantly parted his lips and jolted when Alfred's tongue slipped into his mouth. It felt sinfully good and apparently Alfred thought so, too, because he thrusted slightly against Arthur's hip. Arthur gasped at the sensation, tightening his arms around the other and just barely stopped himself from groaning in frustration when Alfred pulled back.

"I—I kind of looked online about what to do, so I'm going to start now," Alfred said, pouring out some of the lube onto his fingers. "Is that okay?"

Arthur smiled and nodded, leaning up to peck his best friend's lips. "I trust you, Alfred."

Alfred let out a hot breath and sat up to create space between them. Arthur let his legs fall away from Alfred's waist and ignored his self-conciousness to spread them out. It didn't help his embarrassment any with how intently Alfred was staring at his erection and the visible parts of his ass, but he told himself that it was to be expected and tried to relax. With what was to come next, relaxation was vital.

Arthur closed his eyes as Alfred placed a soothing hand on his inner thigh. Watching Alfred watching him was too intense and he needed a break. He could practically feel Alfred's hesitance in the air, but he knew he wouldn't be any better if their positions were reversed. _Now there_ _'_ _s an image_ , Arthur thought.

He gasped again when he suddenly felt one of Alfred's slick fingers rubbing at his hole and dug his fingers into the blanket underneath him. He was beginning to think that he might be a tad noisy in bed with all his gasping, which was not something he had ever expected. It was just so strange to have someone else touching him down there, but he thought that it was definitely strange in a good way.

"Is this okay?" Alfred asked. Arthur opened his eyes to find the other boy peering at him anxiously.

"Yes," he got out. Lord, was he blushing now. Alfred's finger began to apply pressure and he jerked as it slid into him. It didn't hurt, but it was weird and as Alfred rubbed around gently, he squirmed a bit. The motions actually felt pretty good and sent tingles up his spine, but it was also embarrassing. Arthur found respite in the aroused, dazed, and wonderstruck expression on Alfred's face.

He was glad when Alfred shuffled closer and began to stroke up and down his hip and thigh. He could hear the other breathing erratically and he was sure that Alfred could hear him, too. It didn't matter. He knew that Alfred wouldn't judge him for being nervous and maybe even a smidgen uncomfortable. Alfred kissed his knee at the same time that he pressed in a second finger, probably too soon. That did hurt a little, but Alfred noticed his small wince and stopped his movements.

"Too fast?"

"Maybe a tad," Arthur said once he remembered how to speak correctly. Alfred smiled guiltily and pressed more kisses to Arthur's knee, gaining confidence and ducking his head a to kiss his thigh as well. Arthur hummed, wondering what it would feel like if that mouth travelled just a little lower.

"Sorry. I got too excited."

Only Alfred could make him laugh while he was getting fingered. "It's okay," Arthur said honestly. "Keep going."

Alfred did so without question, swirling his fingers lightly and moving them in and out. Arthur could imagine what Alfred was feeling, having experimented with stretching himself before. Although he was doing his best to keep himself relaxed and open, he knew that it was still a tight fit for Alfred even with two fingers.

"I wish I could see you better," Alfred said. Arthur smiled at the way Alfred was squinting at him, eyes free of the usual lenses.

"I told you to get contacts ages ago," Arthur said with a smirk.

"Whatever, mom," Alfred replied. Arthur reached up and smacked his arm.

"Don't say that at a time like this!"

Alfred laughed and maneuvered so that he was hovering over Arthur instead of sitting back on his haunches and kissed him languidly. Arthur appreciated the distraction from being stretched and cupped the back of Alfred's head with a hand, keeping the other fisted in the blanket. They kissed until Arthur felt Alfred pulling away and he loosened the hold he had attained in Alfred's hair. Instead of sitting back up like he had been expecting, Alfred proceeded to kiss other parts of him: his jawline, his nose, his cheek, his neck…anywhere he could reach. It made Arthur feel oddly warm inside.

"What does it feel like?" Alfred asked, pressing up into him with his fingers to indicate what he meant.

"It's…hard to explain," Arthur said. "I guess it's like a pressure? But weird because it's from an outside force. It's getting better now, though."

"Does that mean I can add another one?" Alfred said with a kiss to Arthur's forehead.

"Ahh…yeah." Arthur wrapped his hands around Alfred's biceps and tried not to dig in his nails as Alfred slowly, oh so carefully, inserted a third finger. Arthur's mouth dropped open into an 'O' shape and his eyebrows scrunched together. He had never done that many on himself before and his body had become extremely sensitized, so it hurt more than he expected. Still, Alfred was gentle and the pain gradually lessened with every kiss and stroke that was lavished upon him. "I think this is the most patient I have ever seen you," he commented.

Alfred gave a small laugh. "I don't want to hurt you," he said.

Arthur hummed. "It's going to hurt some no matter how careful you are."

"Still," Alfred said, thrusting his fingers lightly and rubbing against Arthur's walls. "I want to make it as unpainful as possible."

"I don't think 'unpainful' is an actual word," Arthur said, unable to resist the teasing.

Alfred kissed him again for his jab, but Arthur considered that more as a reward than anything. "Smartass," Alfred said.

"Yes, I do believe you're getting quite acquainted with that."

Alfred groaned. "You never stop, do you?"

Arthur laughed and felt a rush of pure happiness burst through him. He wondered if other people had first times that were both hot and full of laughter. He felt…oddly privileged. And the pain from down below was beginning to lessen again, as well. The rhythmic thrusting was starting to feel quite pleasant, actually, and Arthur moaned, curling his toes into the blanket. Alfred's forehead touched down on his and when Arthur looked up, his eyes met Alfred's very dark ones. Were his that dark, too?

"Alfred," Arthur whispered. He bucked his hips downwards, further burying Alfred's fingers inside of him and moaned again. His thumbs drew little circles on Alfred's arms and when Alfred kissed him between his eyebrows, he knew it was time. "Take out your fingers."

Alfred backed up a few inches. "Is something wrong?" he asked, worried expression invading his facial features.

"No," Arthur said. "No—but I think I'm ready now."

Luckily, Alfred caught on to Arthur's meaning and he shivered in anticipation. "Alright," he said, slowly pulling his fingers out. Arthur winced at the cool sensation of being so exposed to the air once he was empty. He knew it wouldn't last long, though, because Alfred was pouring more lube onto his hand and then smoothing it over his cock.

Arthur shifted and made himself comfortable as Alfred returned to hovering over him, supporting himself on one forearm so as to not crush Arthur with his hand cupping the side of Arthur's head. Arthur wrapped his limbs around his best friend, pulling him as close as possible. He loved the way their faces were pressed together, Alfred's triangular nose breathing hotly onto his cheek. He couldn't see Alfred's other hand, but he could guess what it was doing when he felt something nudge against his hole.

"Arthur, are you absolutely, positively sure that you want to do this?" Alfred asked, voice strained from being aroused without any form of relief for too long.

"Bloody hell, Alfred, yes I'm sure!" Arthur bit out in frustration. "Can you not see how horny I am now?"

"Yeah," Alfred whispered softly, sweetly kissing Arthur. "I see you. You look beautiful."

Arthur gasped loudly and may have shouted a little, partially from the unexpected compliment but mostly because Alfred had suddenly thrust his hips forward, effectively burying the head of his cock inside of Arthur. He could hear Alfred moaning from the tight stimulation and felt him bite down quickly on the juncture between Arthur's jaw and neck. His automatic reaction was to clench his muscles down on the intrusion, causing pleasured tremors to travel through Alfred's body.

"Fuck," Alfred swore, voice hoarse. "Oh my god, Arthur."

Arthur remembered to not dig his nails into Alfred's shoulders and loosened his grip, also attempting to relax his entrance. It hurt. It hurt and it was such a tight fit, but he didn't want to stop. Alfred had done his best in preparing him and he was determined to see this through and with any luck, the pain would be changing to something much better soon.

"You're not even all the way in yet," Arthur said, mostly to himself to boost his own morale. His eyes were squeezed shut but he could imagine Alfred's face as a mixture of concerned and delirious and brilliantly happy.

"Is that an invitation?" Arthur felt himself unclenching and relaxing.

"Oh fuck yessss," Arthur ended with a hiss as Alfred began to slide in further. He could feel him pressing deep, deeper than anything had been before inside of him and although it hurt like hell, fireworks were exploding in his brain.

"I'm sorry. I've got you," Alfred said, wriggling an arm under Arthur's back in a sort of hold. It was a bit uncomfortable for him to lay on the hard bone of his arm, but it made Arthur feel very safe and cared for.

"I know," he said. Kissing Alfred long and deep, he moaned as Alfred shifted a bit inside of him and admired how much incredible restraint and patience his best friend was displaying, probably for the first time in his life.

"Alright?" Alfred asked, pecking him on the lips once, twice, thrice.

Arthur nodded. "I'm a tough cookie," he said.

"I know," Alfred said with a laugh. He pulled out almost to the head and thrust himself back in experimentally, a look of pure ecstasy crossing his features. Arthur marveled that he was the one causing Alfred so much pleasure and as Alfred began to fuck him in earnest, he reveled in the moans that spilled past the other's lips.

He couldn't honestly say that the pure physical sensation of Alfred's cock rubbing his passages felt amazing. It was all too new and foreign and really sort of strange. However, the sounds Alfred made and the feeling of their skin pressed together and just the knowledge of what was happening more than made up for it. He found himself completely enjoying every movement, every brush of Alfred's hand down to his hips and leg, every tightening of Alfred's arm from underneath him that brought them closer together.

"Arthur," Alfred moaned. Arthur felt a bolt of heat strike him upon hearing it. "Oh, fuck, this feels so good. _You_ feel so good, oh my god!"

"Ahh," Arthur gasped. He could feel his head clouding further with every sensation. They had lost themselves so quickly in the midst of everything. His ankles were locked around the small of Alfred's back and the repetitive roll of Alfred's hips could be felt in so many different places at once. He was making deep keening noises that rose in volume and when Alfred kissed him for what felt like the hundredth time he was glad to have them muffled.

A sudden tightening of Alfred's grip on his hip and a slurred chanting of Arthur's name was all the warning he had before Alfred gave an especially loud moan and pressed their foreheads together. Arthur felt a liquid warmth burst inside of him and realized that Alfred had orgasmed. He couldn't even blame him for not lasting long as he himself was incredibly aroused and almost ready to pop and he hadn't even been receiving any stimulation to his penis.

Arthur watched as Alfred caught his breath, patiently waiting for him to come to his senses. It took a moment, but Alfred eventually blinked rapidly and looked down at Arthur with the most sated, happy grin he had ever witnessed and Arthur could do nothing but grimace slightly, both at the feeling of Alfred's softening cock still inside him and at his own unsatisfied state.

"Hey there," Alfred said, peppering Arthur's face with kisses.

"Hello," Arthur said. He patted his hand against Alfred's shoulder. "Are you enjoying yourself?"

Alfred hummed. "Oh, honey, consider me thoroughly enjoyed."

"Hmm." Arthur rolled his eyes up towards the ceiling. "You know, I would really like to come sometime soon."

Alfred grinned again and kissed him. "I figured. Just tell me what to do?" he asked as he pulled out, but remained hovering over Arthur.

"You don't have to do anything, I can just—"

"No way!" Alfred cut him off as he began to reach down to stroke himself. "I'll do it."

Arthur nodded and would have blushed if he wasn't already sweaty and red from what they had just done. It was a bit stupid of him to be embarrassed to ask Alfred to finish him, all things considering, but it somehow seemed different. Alfred, however, obviously had no problems with it and Arthur threw his head backwards on the pillow the moment Alfred's hand made contact with his erection. Oh, now _that_ felt incredible. He was back to making those keening noises and this time Alfred didn't muffle them, instead hovering a few inches away from his face. Arthur knew the bastard was just watching him as he stroked.

"Oh, Arthur," Alfred sighed. Arthur didn't know what it meant, but he couldn't care less as his body was ignited in fire and he came harder than he had ever done before in his life. He forgot to not dig his nails into Alfred again and when he was just a gooey puddle on the bed he realized that Alfred was cringing.

"Sorry," he said, releasing his hold on the poor boy.

"S'okay," Alfred replied. Arthur thought that the expression on his face might be called 'admiration' or 'wonder'. "It was worth it."

Lazily, Arthur let his legs fall away from around Alfred's waist and Alfred flopped to the side. Arthur didn't protest when he was gathered up in Alfred's arms and he returned the cuddling by tangling their legs together. Really, they were both hot and sweaty and all Arthur wanted to do was go stand in a freezer to cool himself down, but he felt little motivation to actually move. Alfred's arms were a very good spot, he decided.

"Hey, Art?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

Arthur smiled and tightened his hold around Alfred. "I love you, too, Alfred." Arthur felt more than heard Alfred's answering sigh. "We can't fall asleep," he murmured against Alfred's chest.

"Why not?"

"I don't care to have your mom come home and find us like this," Arthur pointed out. He didn't have the energy to glance at the bedside clock, but he was sure that they didn't have too much longer.

Alfred groaned in complaint at the reminder. "Oh, yeah. We'll get up in a few minutes and get presentable, then. Let's just cuddle for now."

"Sounds fine," Arthur said, keeping his eyes open so he wouldn't be tempted into a nap. To occupy himself, he rubbed the skin along Alfred's back and side. Laying in peaceful, sated silence together was nice. Better than nice. He felt very close to Alfred in that moment, like he now knew Alfred better and more intimately than anyone else in the entire world. Of course, being his best friend, he had already known him better than anyone, but now the extent of it felt much greater.

"I'm really glad we did that," Alfred whispered. "Now, no matter what, you'll always have been my first." Arthur tilted his head upwards to find Alfred watching him happily. He brushed a damp lock of hair away from Alfred's forehead and let his fingers trail to Alfred's earlobe, tracing the outline of it before settling on his cheek.

"I'm glad, too," Arthur said without hesitation. Alfred was right: the best way to make their first time meaningful was to do it with the person that meant the most to them.

Alfred seemed to deliberate for a moment, chewing his lip softly. "Can we do that again sometime?" Arthur felt his chest lurch in surprise, shocked that Alfred would want that. Then, he chuckled at how silly they were, trailing his fingers through Alfred's hair.

"We'll see," he said, even as his heart sung _yes!_

* * *

 **A/N: Of course, how they progress from here is up to you. I can tell you that they will be roommates in college and personally, I like to think that they fall into a sort of "holy shit we can't stop having sex with each other because man you're actually really hot how did I never notice" sort of routine. Then they realize that they don't even try to have sex with other people and decide to be together. In the gay way.**

 **So that's that! I used this story to procrastinate on writing the next chapter of The World I Once Knew, sorry. I am actually working on that, though, and I promise that it'll be the next thing I post. Hopefully within the next week. Thanks for reading!**


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